Performances are at the Night Flight Theatre, 226 N. Golden Mall, Burbank, Thursdays through Saturdays at 8 p.m. Tickets: $10; (818) 845-4640.
'A MAN WITHOUT A CONTRA'
Not everyone takes the issues explored in "Rum and Coke" so seriously. Gross National Product, a Washington, D.C.-born troupe at the Cast, looks for laughs in Iranamuck and other headlines of the day, finding a few--though not as many as the incessantly frantic pace might lead you to expect.
While members of GNP perform sharp impersonations of the likes of Oliver North, Ronald Reagan and Tammy Bakker, they don't tell us anything about these characters that we didn't already know--admittedly a difficult challenge in our media-saturated atmosphere.
GNP's funniest bits are usually takeoffs on more underdone subjects, such as the anti-terrorist briefings given by GNP's flight attendants. The requisite opera parody, this one involving rival ice cream brands, is a drag.
The direction, by John Simmons with Susan Marya Baronoff, is certainly polished. But a few minutes for loose-limbed improvisation might help the evening seem more theatrical, less canned.
Performances are at 804 N. El Centro Ave., Fridays and Saturdays at 10:30 p.m. Tickets: $10; (213) 462-0265.
